Sept/October 2022 Challenge - Keeping It Simple

[DawninCal]

Boy, oh boy, am I ever late posting our challenge. Too much stuff going on at the moment - my brain is mush!

Since I am so late, leaving our participants with only six weeks to get their challenge piece done instead of eight, I'm going to keep it real simple this time. Your challenge is to make a pair of earrings. They can be as simple or as elaborate as you wish; my goal here is to make our lives a little easier.

Please post your finished design in this tread by October 15, keeping in mind that we tend to play rather loosely with our deadlines. And, yes. I know that I still have not completed my "dots" piece - hope to be working on that soon!

Looking forward to seeing your earrings creations. Oh, Cat, we don't mind if your earrings aren't exactly alike.



Dawn

[caeterle]

They are only two days old and I haven't shown them here, so ...
And no, Dawn, they are not exactly alike, sigh.

The stones are white agate. The plan for them had always been sheep, but originally with wire.
I gave them an ordinary peyote bezel to which I added bunches of 15° seed beads and in the last row 11°. It's purpose that the last row doesn't lie flat to the stones, I did that to emphasize the wool feeling instead of making it all nice and regular.

[DawninCal]

Well, Cat, I think you have just set a record for fastest entry in one of our challenges!

Love, love, love your little sheep. They are so darn cute, yet the luster of the white agates gives them a touch of understated elegance was well.

Nice job!



Dawn

[caeterle]

I think the only other time I was that fast was with the poppy field pendant (which I still love) and I even made that one specifically for the challenge, lol.

Thank you very much, Dawn! I had to take a picture in my hand because all-white earrings are even harder to take a picture of in my new box.

[DawninCal]

That poppy field pendant is one of my all time favorite challenge pieces, Cat.

I hear ya about photographing white. How do you like your new box?



Dawn

[caeterle]

Honestly? I liked the old one better because of the daylight lamps outside of the box. I don't like the light strips at all, but the boxes that you could close at the front all had them. I'm used to my mirror background and need to find a way to diffuse the light. The diffuser cloth that came with the box doesn't work well.

[michelle]

Oh wow! These are incredible, Cat! And so cute!

[DawninCal]

That's too bad, Cat. Rather disappointing, I imagine. Are you going to go back to using the old one?



Dawn

[caeterle]

Thank you, Michelle! A plan had been to make a black sheep and a white sheep head to head. I still have the black onyx. It will be much easier to make a black sheep with beads, and at first I thought about making the black/white sheep design in beads.
I can always get another one of the white agates and try it eventually if I feel like it, but at the moment I'm thinking the onyx may end up in a Halloween piece.

Dawn, no, the old one is not an option anymore. I'm too tired of the fights der Dekan and I have about him going in there after he almost fell with it more than once (dangerous for the lamp next to it, too). At the moment, he's not interested in the new one at all (probably trying to make me feel safe before launching a new attack ) and I enjoy that.
I'll just have to learn how to work with the light strips. I just don't want to change the overall look of most of my pictures now and use something else instead of my acrylic plate.

[caeterle]

I intend to be an overachiever in this one

I'm still struggling with pictures, in this case I haven't found the right light setting yet to stay as true as possible to the roses' color, they keep looking red-orangey, but making a video in my hand worked ok, so I guess it's a light and angle problem. Still not a happy camper (not to mention that der Dekan has been sitting up there more than once, sigh).
Then my video converter has changed to login only, so I had to look for another one. Now Instagram won't upload my video or should I say I get an empty picture, but the sound is there.
YouTube to the rescue!
I'll have the most boring channel in all the world!

[caeterle]

I would have made a light version of the Gothic Roses, but didn't have the right firepolished crystals on hand. Instead I found some crystal rondelles with a coating on the back that I couldn't resist although I never knew how to use them.
I am having fun with the skulls.

[DawninCal]

I love that design, Cat, both in the red/black and red/white. Very soft, feminine and romantic. They would be great Valentine's Day earrings. Now, I'll have to add your youtube channel to the ones that I already watch! Can't imagine being bored with those beauties to look at.

Good luck with the photography set-up. I know how frustrating that can be trying to get it all the way you want it. And, may that little creeper stay out of your new tent!



Dawn

[caeterle]

Thank you, Dawn The ice version is going to go to my friend and co-worker who always has my back.

There won't be much to see on my channel, I just used it to show the sparkle that is hard to capture in still photos. I thought about making the videos private and only do link sharing, but what the heck, they will go unnoticed, anyway

The latest is that der Dekan likes to use the tent as a stop between the sideboard and the shelf. He wouldn't need it because the jump would not be a problem for him, but I honestly think he likes to provoke me, just like he did with the old one.
Yesterday one of the light strips that wouldn't clip on right anymore came down on one side and after that I could take a better picture. Maybe I need to use just one of them and maybe I'll find something to put there instead to stabilize the top a bit more when I'm not using the tent.

[DawninCal]

Those will be lovely for your friend.

That der Daken is a little terror.

You'll figure it out, Cat. It's just kind of frustrating getting there.



Dawn

[michelle]

Beautiful Cat! And lucky friend!